Fighting Parkinson’s, and your self-fulfilling prophecy

Self-fulfilling prophecy: “A self-fulfilling prophecy is a prediction that directly or indirectly causes itself to become true, by the very terms of the prophecy itself.” Source: Wikipedia. “…causing something to happen by believing it will come true.” Source: Urban Dictionary. When thinking about life, and Parkinson’s, and fear, and FEAR (False Evidence Appearing Real), I realized that most people’s self-fulfilling prophecies involve negative things. So, today, let’s explore making recovery your POSITIVE SELF-FULFILLING PROPHECY!

Their way, that is, the Western Medicine view of Parkinson’s: You have a progressively degenerative neurological disease for which there is no cure. Their treatment plan is to give you medications or brain surgery to assist you in tolerating the disease for the rest of your life as their view is that you cannot recover from this disease, so the best they offer you is to try to make the rest of your life more tolerable while you progressively degenerate. Their view is that there is no point in trying to recover because the prognosis is that you cannot recover. If you accept their view, then this is your self-fulfilling prophecy: Whatever unpleasantness that occurs in your physical being from your Parkinson’s diagnosis until your death is a reflection that your Parkinson’s is getting worse…and you are filled with fear.

Our way, that is, the Parkinson’s Recipe for Recovery&#0174 view of Parkinson’s: Parkinson’s is a symptom of your life out of balance (physically, mentally, and spiritually), and the Parkinson’s Recipe for Recovery™ is a cure. Our treatment plan is to work on your physical body to heal your organs, work on your mind to calm your emotions and calm your adrenaline-driven mind, and to work on your spirit to reconnect with the soul and open your dopamine faucet for full dopamine flow and finalization of full recovery. Our view is that there is a point in trying to recover because the prognosis is that if you are doing the Recipe, you can recover. If you accept our view, then this is your self-fulfilling prophecy: If you are doing the Recipe, then you heading toward your full recovery, so whatever unpleasantness that occurs in your physical being is necessary for your recovery whether you understand it or not, or like it or not…it is a reflection of your movement toward recovery, and you are filled with faith and hope.

The “way” you accept, theirs or ours, is a choice. Here are some things to assist you in choosing our way…Recovery:
Howard did the Recipe and fully recovered.
Marie did the Recipe and fully recovered.
Pratima did the Recipe and fully recovered.
(Nobody who has followed their way ever has recovered).
Many of you who are doing the Recipe are seeing signs that you are moving toward recovery.
The path toward recovery is filled with faith, hope, compassion, gratitude, acceptance, vulnerability, happiness and joy; don’t you want to replace the negative emotions in your mind with these positive emotions in your heart?
The path toward recovery teaches you to accept yourself, to be kind to yourself, to be compassionate to yourself, and that this is not selfish…it is necessary. It leads to having an open heart as you accept others, and are kind and compassionate toward others.

If you set your sights on the positive outcome of the path toward recovery, and you do the things in the Recipe necessary for your recovery, then you create the self-fulfilling prophecy of recovery. Once you create a self-fulling prophecy of recovery, then you are prepared to adopt this affirmation:

“I am doing the Recipe and heading toward my full recovery, so I accept that whatever unpleasantness occurs in my physical being is necessary for my recovery whether I understand it or not, or like it or not…it is a reflection of my movement toward recovery, and I am filled with faith and hope. I am fearless. I am recovery! Oh, yes, AND I AM WORTH IT!!!”

Yes you are…you are recovery, and YOU ARE WORTH IT!!!

All my best,

Howard

NOTE: WORKSHOPS UPDATE. The Boston workshop formerly scheduled to take place on July 27, 2013 is being postponed. Many of the places I contacted only can rent space to a non-profit company, some are doing renovations, and some are not available; late September looks like a better time to have the Boston Workshop. The Los Angeles workshop will take place on August 24, 2013. Marianne, a woman who I am coaching, has graciously offered the Community Room at her apartment complex as the venue for my Los Angeles workshop. Click here for more information and registration.

Sorry to hear that the Boston workshop is being postponed to September but certainly understand the circumstances. Just so you are aware, the New England Parkinson’s bike ride is Saturday, Sept 7. This popular event attracts 500+ riders plus many people with Parkinson’s, family, friends, and supporters to volunteer, encourage, cheer, etc. …all to raise money for research. The event occurs in Maine but pulls many people from the Boston area (the ride was originally founded in Boston a few years ago). It might be best to avoid scheduling the Boston workshop for that same weekend (Sept 7/8).

Kathy, my wife, and I are very much looking forward to meeting you and attending the Boston workshop. It will be wonderful to meet other people on the same Recipe for Recovery journey as myself who live in our area. We live in Portland Maine.

I am 55, had PD for 8 years, was on PD meds for 7 years, have been PD med free since April 1 2013, and have been doing your Recipe for Recovery since February 2013. Thanks for the encouraging message. It was just what I needed to hear.

Hi Harold.
Thanks for the wonderful words of hope that you write for us all. I always enjoy reading your newsletter and feel supported and part of a community when I get it in my in box. Keep up the good work. You are inspirational. Don’t forget we need you to do a workshop in the uk as well!

Sally, it took me 9 months to stop my PD meds (June 2012 to Apr 2013). I actually started Howard’s recipe part-time in Sept 2012, but I was trying several remedies at the time and so not focused. The key to PD med reduction is to go very slowly, 10-20% per 2 weeks, reducing ONLY one medication at a time. I had 5 PD meds to get off, hence it took 9 months. Going too fast is extremely dangerous. I’d share my schedule and info source to interested individuals …and with Howard’s permission.

Sorry for my confusing time line. The good news is that I’m partially recovered and that my unmedicated PD symptoms are not nearly as bad as everyone thought they would be. Being vulnerable with no meds has been a very positive experience for me. Recovery is next as I hold firmly to my belief (and self-fulfilling prophecy!) that I will recover! Thank you, Howard, for that!

Thank you for sharing. I would prefer that you not list exactly how you got off of your medications. It is the same reasoning behind why I never have posted a theory of medication reduction. Since the current medical standard of practice for Parkinson’s is to put people on medications, I do not want to run the risk of somebody accusing me of practicing medicine without a license by providing a “process” of medication elimination which would be contrary to the standard medical practice for Parkinson’s, and then try to shut down this website. If you do not mind communicating with people “off-line,” please let me know by way of email, howard@fightingparkinsonsdrugfree.com. And, anybody who wishes to communicate with you off-line can send me their email address and I will forward the email addresses to you if you have communicated to me that you are agreeable to communicate with these individuals.
Thank you for your sharing and for your understanding of my position on this matter.
Blessings,
Howard

This is perhaps the opportunity to thank you once again for the power of your message and the profundity of its truth. Your insight, experience and wisdom are expressed with a clarity that illuminates my life and has so permeated my thinking that I actually feel grateful to be touched by PD in order to deepen into that wisdom, turn my life around and figure out (A) what to jettison (about 88% of my activities and belongings and 99% of my dreams) and (B) what to cultivate: sweet simplicity, heart (love) and play/creativity).

This wisdom is all thanks to you. Am so very grateful! You are a living blessing.

Thank you Howard for the encouragement and inspiring strength and clarity. I am on my way daily to full recovery. Mentally and spiritually stronger and emotionally present. Body no worse recovery here I am cheers to all Helen

Jane Lindsay your comment is written with such beautiful clarity and with heartfelt insight. Thank you.
Dana, thank you for sharing. I hope to be, and plan on being, medication free soon. I have considerably reduced the meds since last August. Your comment is most inspiring to me.

Thank you all for your beautiful, heart-felt comments. We truly are a community of wonderful friends all pointing in the direction of recovery.
I have the power to heal myself.
You have the power to heal yourself.
Together we have the power to heal the world.
And, keep repeating:
“I am doing the Recipe and heading toward my full recovery, so I accept that whatever unpleasantness occurs in my physical being is necessary for my recovery whether I understand it or not, or like it or not…it is a reflection of my movement toward recovery, and I am filled with faith and hope. I am fearless. I am recovery! Oh, yes, AND I AM WORTH IT!!!”

thank you also howard –again–
and jane too for echoing my own response
i have also been letting go of so many things, dreams, possessions in order to let love, affection, gratitude and light into my life
i did this after an initial period of fear shock grief and terrible uncertainty

like you i have simplified my life and am continuing the process of doing so
as you know its not always simple to be simple!

as a songwriter i am expressing these little steps in little songs
my latest one is actually called simplicity
so it seems we are all on similar paths in this warm loving community

many thanks again for allowing me to be part of it
and thanks also Howard for the wisdom of your latest blog
linda